A Tangled Web
by reindeergames
Summary: Takes place after "Frame". Declan Gage has recanted his confession. The FBI's BAU has been called in. What was Declan really trying to accomplish with his crime spree?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in any way. Simply borrowing them for my own pleasure.**

**I did not use a beta reader, so all mistakes are my own.**

**This takes place after "Frame". Declan Gage has recanted his confession and would like to have another run at Bobby, but instead the FBI is called in. X-over with "Criminal Minds", but the story is really all about our Bobby and what Declan's motives really were.**

**Characters' thoughts are in italics**

_**Oh what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive. - Sir Walter Scott**_

3:54 pm, Quantico Virginia. FBI Agent Jennifer Jareau, the Community Liaison Officer for the BAU (Behavioral Analysis Unit) was sitting in her office intently studying a fax she had just received from the New York Police Department. J.J., as she was affectionately known, was the gatekeeper for the elite team of profilers. All potential cases for the unit came to her first. She would review the facts, consider the motivation for the request, weigh out if their involvement would be a help or a hindrance, and ultimately decide if the case should be presented to the rest of the team for consideration. Based only on the phone call she had just received, she had been prepared to take a pass on this case, but something she read in the file that accompanied it quickly changed her mind..

J.J. paused in the door way of her boss' office. Senior Special Agent Aaron Hotchner was talking on the phone. She waited patiently until he he hung up and then motioned her in. "Hotch, I got a very unusual request from the NYPD 20 minutes ago. I was going to turn them down, but the Police Commissioner was very persuasive and practically begged me to at least read the case file." She held out the small sheath of papers. "I think you need to see this."

Agent Hotchner accepted the file from his her and began flipping through the pages. J.J. watched the surprise slowly spread across his even features.

"You did the right thing," he said finally, dragging his eyes up from the report. " I'll take it from here. Thank you for bringing it to my attention."

"You're welcome sir." As the blond woman prepared to leave, Hotch made one last request.

"Could you ask Reid to step in here please, and J.J., this stays between us for now."

Hotch was already gathering his things for the trip to New York, when Spenser Reid entered his office.

"Spence we are leaving within the hour for New York City. Do you need to go home to get your ready bag?"

"Uh, no. I have it here." The young man shot his boss a quizzical look. "Is the whole team going?"

"No. We are handling it ourselves for now. I'll brief you on the way, but I do want to ask you one question. Does the name Declan Gage mean anything to you?"

LOCILOCILOCILOCILOCILOCILOCI

It was 6:15 pm and Danny Ross, Captain of the NYPD's Major Case Squad , was neatening up his desk before he called it a day. As he was walking toward the door, and freedom, his cell phone rang. He look at the screen and saw "Chief of D's" blinking on the caller ID.

Damn, he muttered under his breath, as he returned to his desk , sat back down in his chair and hit the answer key on the phone. "Hello Boss," he said, in the most enthusiastic voice he could muster.

"Ross," the Chief growled. "If I had only wondered in the past if Detective Goren was a royal pain in my ass, now I've had it confirmed."

"What's up?" Ross queried, refraining from adding "now".

"The squirrel that had his brother killed, Gage, has recanted his confession. He claims that he was unfairly manipulated by Goren, was denied his right to counsel AND he's hinting at more bodies. "

"Chief. You know none of that can be true. If anybody was being manipulated during that confession, it was Detective Goren. We took every precaution, including having an ADA in the observation area and videotaping the whole interview. We have him on record refusing counsel and denying any more victims."

"I read the report Ross. Everything seems in order, but when it comes to the Whac...

"Chief," Ross broke in, before the man could finish his pet name for the beleaguered Detective. He couldn't stop the Chief from slandering Goren, but he wasn't prepared to listen to it either. "What does this mean to the case?"

"It means a jury trial, with full media hoopla , if a confession can't be obtained. The department does not need another black eye."

"Are you proposing that Goren take another shot at Gage?"

"NO!" the Chief spat out, accompanied by a mirthless chuckle. "The Commissioner has called in the FBI."

"What can the FBI do that we can't."

"This case is now being classified as a serial killing and the FBI is sending up two agents from their Behavioral Analysis Unit."

"Boss, Goren is every bit the profiler that..."

"I would be careful who I attach my loyalties to Danny. No, this is a done deal. Make sure Eames and her partner are available to the FBI upon their arrival tomorrow."

"Has Detective Goren been informed that the confession has been recanted?"

"Not to my knowledge."

Ross took a deep breath. "Chief, as the brother of the victim, surely he has the right to..."

The Chief of Detectives cut him off. "In my book, he is a cop first and needs to do the job handed to him. So do you. I will be escorting the Agents to 1PP personally. Do us all a favor and keep Goren on a short leash," and with that the line went dead.

LOCILOCILOCILOCILOCILOCILOCI

The next morning Detectives Alex Eames and Bobby Goren were sitting at their respective desks, open files and coffee cups littering the surfaces. Alex was finalizing a statement on the murder case they just closed and Bobby was pecking away at his laptop's keyboard, researching, well...something. With him you never knew. He could be Goggling a suspect's name or looking up the exact kind of fly that rode on the back of a Tanzanian Zebra. Alex had stopped wondering long ago why he needed to know those kinds of things. Earlier in their partnership she might have found it endearing, may even have walked over to him and leaned over his shoulder to read what he was looking up. Those days were gone. She stayed in her seat and kept writing, though she couldn't completely tamp down the quiet sadness that seeped into her heart.

It had been about 6 weeks since Declan Gage had effectively wiped out what little of Bobby's family had remained. Bobby had returned to work after only one week of personal leave and the strain of the tragedy still showed on his face, if not in his ability to do good police work. The two Detectives were managing to function as efficient partners again, but the easy camaraderie they had once effortlessly shared was gone. The personal trust they had spent years building between them was withered and brittle. Bobby had his walls of protection built up around himself about 3 feet thick, had added a moat and posted a guard and Alex just felt too tired to try to breach his barriers in more than a halfhearted way. They both spent every day ignoring the 800 pound gorilla in the room that was their lost friendship.

Bobby looked up as two men walked by his desk, chaperoned by the Chief of Detectives. The three men paused for a moment at the threshold to Captain Ross' office, then entered the room, closing the door behind them.

Alex glanced over at Bobby and noted he was suddenly tense, his fingers frozen on the keysboard. She returned her gaze to the notes in front of her before speaking. "What do you think that's about Bobby?"

"My guess is FBI."

She looked up at him. "You suddenly on the Most Wanted List and forgot to mention it over coffee this morning," she quipped hoping she was keeping her tone light.

"Not the last time I checked," he answered in a flat voice, shutting her down, again.

Alex mentally kicked herself for not keeping a better reign on her tongue. _Damn_, she thought to herself, _the eggshells sure are fragile today_. Then suddenly she put it together – FBI, their squad room, Chief of D's. _Oh Crap_. "Gage?" "

"Seems likely," he answered in a tight voice. He started typing again, but not before Alex saw the pain flicker across his face.

"_Dear God_," Alex thought. "_Not again. How much more can he take_?" Not for the first time, she wished that Declan had made himself the third victim that day. She wished that she had something to say to her partner that would make it all better, but could find no words.

They continued to work in silence.

Fifteen long minutes later, the Chief of D's was history and Ross poked his head out and summoned them both to his office. Alex waited until he stood, gathered his notebook and began to walk before she followed Bobby into the room. He gave no outward appearance of distress, but Alex, who once thought she knew her big partner better than she knew herself, could almost feel the waves of panic emanating from his body.

"Close the door Eames," Ross ordered as soon as she passed the threshold. She did, then turned and looked from Ross to the two men and then at Bobby.

"Detectives Alex Eames and Robert Goren" Ross began. "This is Senior Special Agent Aaron Hotchner and Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid of the FBI's Behavorial Analysis Unit."

Handshakes were exchanged and Ross asked everyone to have a seat.

Alex settled back in her chair, crossed her arms and took the opportunity to get a quick look at the two profilers.

Spencer Reid was amazingly young looking. He had dirty blond hair which he wore long and was rapier thin, almost delicate looking. He was dressed very casually, in a pair of brown cords, long sleeved red checked shirt, blue striped tie and ten dollar canvas tennis shoes. He was clutching at a leather shoulder bag for dear life. She also noted that he was carrying an impossibly large gun in an obvious holster. It looked so out of place that she was just certain there had to be a story to it, some reason why he needed the reassurance of obvious firepower. He was fidgety and she noted his eyes fairly crackled with intelligence, even as he did his best to look non-threatening and unobtrusive. A _Doctor and an FBI agent, _she thought to herself_. What is he 23, 24? Wow. Must be nearly as smart as my partner._

Aaron Hotchner seemed to be Dr. Reid's exact opposite. Regal bearing, impeccable dresser and sober as a judge, yet his eyes were kind, just sort of sad. They reminded her of Bobby's eyes, full of natural curiosity and acquired horror, in equal measures. No obvious gun, but she was certain he was carrying too, probably small caliber, maybe in an ankle holster. This was a man who didn't need to assert his power by display, he exuded it from every pore.

She caught Agent Hotchner watching her looking at him and Reid. She held his look and smiled demurely, playing the _I'm_ _just the air headed female sidekick _card she sometimes played when the mood suited her. The older agent gave her just a ghost of a smile and she knew in a flash he didn't buy her act for a second.

"Look," Ross began, addressing his detectives. "There is no easy way to say this. Declan Gage has recanted and the Commissioner called in the FBI to try to get another confession and avoid a very public trial." He held up his hand when Alex exclaimed in surprise, effectively shutting her down down before he added, "I know that neither one of you are happy about this, any of it. However, I expect you to work with Agent Hotchner and Dr. Reid and give them what they need to put this to rest once and for all. That's an order." He paused a moment and looked into Bobby's somewhat emotionless face before he added, in a gentler voice, "No one wants to see him get away with what he did to your brother, Detective."

Bobby's only answer was to nod once, but Ross understood. Goren would probably never be one of his personal favorites, but it was impossible to not have empathy for the situation the man currently found himself in.

Alex had glanced at Bobby as soon as Ross said the word 'recanted' and was a little shocked at his lack of reaction. _This is not good_, she thought to herself. _He had been right about the FBI agents, probably even guessed what was coming as soon as he laid eyes on the two men, and this is his reaction._ After his mom passed, his grief had been vented outward through reckless behavior, uncharacteristically childish outbursts and blinding flashes of anger. Frank's death however, had made Bobby turn everything inward. Sometimes he was so self-contained she found herself wondering if she needed to stick a mirror under his nose to see if he was still breathing. Like now.

Bobby felt like he had been plunged into an icy lake. Panic was spreading through his whole body. If he wasn't really careful he felt like he might suddenly start hyperventilating, but he would be dammed if he became the squad's personal spectacle, again. He forced him self to stay still and silent.

Dr. Reid had been scanning the faces of both detectives as their superior officer spoke. Detective Eames looked angry and somewhat defiant, but he also noticed her glancing repeatedly at her partner, taking his emotional temperature, as it were. _She is protective of him_, he thought. Detective Goren looked tense, but ultra composed. The big man had shown little outward reaction to the news, but Spenser noted the muscles pulsing along his jaw line - a sure sign of concealed emotion. _He seems to be doing his best to not let us see what he is thinking. The profiler is being profiled and he knows it._

Agent Hotchner rose from his seat and addressed Captain Ross. "Sir, is there an empty room Reid and I could use?"

"Of course Agent," Ross responded. "Follow Eames and Goren. They will show you to Interrogation Room 2 and turn over all of their notes to you."

Hotch addressed the two detectives for the first time. "We are going to need to speak with you both as well as look over your notes. It may be a lengthy interview. Is that going to be a problem?"

"No," spoke up Ross. "Turn your open case notes over to Jeffreys and hit the paperwork until you are needed. I am pulling you both off the active roster until this is settled."

Hotch noted that Goren was still very inward, almost emotionally folded into himself, like a piece of origami paper. Eames had physically turned her body toward her partner when the announcement was made about their "talk" and had not taken her eyes off him since.

After Bobby finally met her gaze, she spoke up and answered for the both of them.."We are apparently at your disposal. Ready whenever you are."

Bobby was seated closest to the door so he stood, opened it and then waited politely for the two agents and Alex to pass through before following them out of the office.

"I'll show them to the room Bobby, if you want to gather up the reports" Alex said as she began leading the way through the squad room.

"Right," he replied and stopped at their desk. He sat in his chair and began looking for the folder he needed. When he located the notes, he looked down at his hands and saw they were shaking. His throat felt tight and his heart was pounding in his chest. He took a deep breath and willed himself to calm down. _You have to be calm. You will get through this. _He repeated those words over and over in his mind, like a mantra. He was so inwardly focused he didn't even notice Alex was back until she gently pulled the folder from his clenched fingers.

"I'll take this to them and then meet you in the records room. OK?" she asked.

"What do we need in the records room?"

"I need you to help me find something." She began to walk away and then she shot him that look over her shoulder, the one that said _don't argue, just do._

"Yeah, fine." He got up and dutifully walked to the records room, though he couldn't imagine what they needed to find there. He was leaning one hip against the table when she walked in and closed the door. She paused a second and studied his face before walking up to him.

"So what are we trying to find Eames?"

"We need to find Bobby and Alex. The two people who trusted one another and were damn fine friends, once."

He cocked an eyebrow at her and began to stand up. "I don't have time for this."

"Yes, you do," she shot back firmly.

"No." He put both hands in front of himself like a shield. "Eames, look I know you mean well, but those agents..."

"Exactly," she said interrupting him. "In a few minutes those agents are going to pick you clean like last Thanksgiving's turkey and we both know it. Bobby, I may not be a brilliant judge of the human psyche like you, but I am a Detective. I know why they're here. I also know the devastation they will leave in their wake.

"I can take care of myself." His words were brave, almost defiant.

"No, that's the thing. You can't right now. You have been giving it everything you've got. Your tank is clearly running on fumes." She paused, trying to find the best way to go on. He still had his defenses firmly in place. His face inscrutable. "And, I, I have made it as difficult on you as I could. I have been angry, sarcastic, unyielding. She ticked off each word on her fingers and stood in front of him with her eyes bright with unshed tears.

Bobby started fidgeting, pulling his fingers, shuffling from foot to foot, obviously very uncomfortable with where the conversation was headed. "Eames, why say this now?"

She bowed her head for a moment willing her self to get her emotions back under control before looking back up and meeting his troubled brown eyes with her own. "I didn't see my own behavior clearly until I watched the agents observing you. I'm sure you realize why they brought in Dr. Reid- they are hoping Gage will get a sense of **you** and open up to them. They are going to do their job and try to get the confession and if that means using you up in the process, so be it. To hell with you as a flesh and blood person."Her voice dropped in volume and became husky with emotion. "Exactly the way I have been treating you. I realized in that moment that I somehow forgot to remember to see you as a person in this whole mess. Not the cop, not the case, but you- my friend, who has suffered enormous personal losses."

"You weren't wrong when you said that most of my problems are self-imposed." He had dropped his head and closed his eyes, remembering the words she had said to him that horrible day.

"Yes I was. I was angry and as usual I let my tongue work independently of my brain. You can be your own worst enemy Bobby, but sometimes we all can. I have no right to judge you." She tentatively touched a hand lightly to the top of one of his. "I've been a lousy friend and I have no excuse."

He jerked his head up and gave her a startled look. She was the best friend he had, how could she not know that.

"Bobby, if it had been my Mother or my brother, would you have been there for me, in whatever way I wanted or needed? Or would you have acted like I did, like nothing was happening?"

He pushed away from the table and started pacing back in forth in the small room. He drew a ragged breath before saying, "Eames, you tried to talk to me about my mom and, and F-Frank," his voice breaking on his brother's name. " I wouldn't let you. I pushed you away."

"Yeah, you did, but I was more than happy to be pushed. I can't let you take all the blame this time."

"I don't know what you want me to say Alex."

"Just say you will let me support you now, just a little. Please don't go through this alone. You don't have to. I'm right here."

"I...I know you mean well, but, I just, ..."

"Bobby," she began with a slight edge to her voice. "If you don't agree soon I'll have to break into a chorus of **Lean on Me** and then I will be forced to grab the gun off my hip and shoot us both to put us out of our misery. You do NOT want me to sing."

Her remark caught him off guard and before he could stop it a small chuckle slipped out. He stopped pacing and crossed his arms in that I-don't-know-what-to-do-now pose she was so familiar with. It meant he was softening.

She lightly poked his chest with one finger and said, "I'm not asking you to tear down the whole wall Detective Goren, just take out a brick or two." Her grin faded. "Its probably more consideration than I deserve, Bobby."

"No. It's not." _You deserve everything_ he thought. He looked her in the eyes and for the first time in a long time she saw just a hint of the old familiar playfulness on his face. "One brick Eames."

"That's all I need." She patted his arm and gave him a smile.

He wanted to tell her how much he had missed her, how heartbroken he had been, how much he needed her in his life, but he found himself able to only choke out two words, "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now c'mon partner. Let's go throw ourselves to the wolves."

**A/N: Spenser Reid of "Criminal Minds" had to be based on Bobby Goren. The parallels are too great – Brilliant, troubled, absent dad, schizophrenic mom, loner, sensitive to a fault. Every time I see those two characters on their separate shows I wish I could see them together, and as that will never happen, I decided to put them in a story together. They will have more interaction in later chapters.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in any way. Simply borrowing them for my own pleasure.**

**I did not use a beta reader, so all mistakes are my own.**

**Characters' thoughts are in italics**

**Chapter 2 – A Rabbit out of a Hat**

Goren and Eames entered the interrogation room and walled around the gray metal table to the two empty chairs. The notes and crime scene photos from the case were fanned out in front of them.

Alex watched Bobby studiously ignore the photos, knowing several of them were of Frank's lifeless body.

After Bobby had chosen his seat, she had scooted her chair just ever so slightly toward toward him, just close enough to let him know with her proximity that he wasn't going to have to face this alone. He had given her a quick glance that told her he was grateful for her support.

Spencer had noted the gesture and the look that passed between the two detectives. He quietly studied Detective Goren carefully. _His face is more open now and he doesn't seem to be as shut down as he did in his captain's office. His partner moved closer into his personal space and he welcomed it. She senses this won't not be easy for him and wants to help. That dynamic is going to be a factor I need to keep in mind._

"Thank you for making time for us Detectives," began Agent Hotchner.

Bobby turned that intense Goren-stare of his on the dark haired Federal agent. "It's not exactly like we had much of a choice Hotch," he responded, surprising Alex with his obvious familiarity with the older of the two men.

Hotch gave him a wry smile, studying the detective right back. "It's been a while Bobby."

"Yeah, too long," Bobby answered. He glanced over at Alex. "I've known Aaron since he was a newly minted Field Agent and I was in the CID. We were both attending Forensic Psychology seminars given by his future boss, Jason Gideon and D-Declan back in the late 80's." Bobby's normally soft voice had gotten even softer as Declan's name passed through his lips.

It had probably been at least 5 years since they had physically seen each other, and Bobby's current appearance was somewhat shocking to Hotch. The Robert Goren in his head was an impeccably dressed, confident, enthusiastic individual, capable of spouting off random, yet vital, facts like no one he had ever met. Well, until he met Spencer that was. The man currently sitting in front of him was grayer, heavier, sporting a scruffy beard, almost visibly burdened by the recent events in his life. He hardly seemed like the same person. When the two men first met nearly 20 years ago, Aaron had known instantly that he was going to like the large, intense man and they had remained friends, if distant ones, ever since.

Bobby's mentor however, had been another story entirely. Hotch had never been drawn to Declan Gage the way so many others had, his own mentor Jason Gideon, included. He knew that even after Gage had been drummed out of the FBI and almost everyone connected with the world of criminal profiling had disowned him, Bobby had stayed loyal. Hotch admired him for that, but felt the price for that loyalty may had been way too high and could be about to increase dramatically.

Bobby now turned his gaze to the younger agent who was sitting silently, taking everything in. "I've read some of your work Dr. Reid. Very insightful."

"Uh," stuttered Reid, "Spencer is fine and frankly I'm surprised you would be familiar with anything I've written. I, I don't publish that often and my articles mostly end up in strictly hardcore science journals." He looked down at his hands as he spoke.

Alex watched Bobby dip his head and then look into Reid's face to get his eye contact before he answered the younger man. _Here we go_, she thought.

"'Sociopathic tendencies in mid-teen males' - published in the May 2004 issue of the **Atlanta Scientific Journal** and 'Right Brain, Left brain Incompatibility Issues in the Development of Late Onset Schizophrenia' published in the 2006 special edition of the **Brain Development Monitor,**" Bobby rattled off easily.

Spencer hesitated just for a second then said, "Exactly right Detective Goren."

"It's Bobby"

Spencer nodded. "Okay. Thank you." _Interesting way to get my attention. Excellent recall for facts. Hotch warned me not to underestimate him. I see why._

There was silence for a moment before Hotchner spoke up. "I'm sorry about your brother Bobby."

Bobby looked down at the table for a moment and twisted his mouth the way he did when he was stressed and upset. He brought his eyes back up to Hotch's before speaking. "Why are you here, Aaron? The BAU doesn't get rolled out for a dead junkie, even if he is the brother of an NYPD detective." His voice was hard, but it fooled no one. The grief he felt for his brother was etched clearly on his face.

"Gage recanted his confession."

"I heard that much in Ross' office. I know a 'company line' when I hear one." Bobby hadn't taken his eyes off Hotch's face since they began talking.

Hotch returned his gaze. "You knew why as soon as you saw us walk in your squad room."

"Have you spoken to Jason yet?"

"I, we," he amended, flashing a glance at the young doctor, "Don't know exactly where Jason is, not since he resigned two years ago. He gets in touch with us. I have the word out."

Alex finally couldn't control her confusion. "Gentleman, either ask me to leave or fill me in. What is this, a Pancake Supper at the CIA – half truths served along with your flap jacks?"

Spencer smiled briefly despite himself. "Sorry, Detective Eames."

"Call me Alex, " she told him. "I think we should be past Agent and Detective at this point." She had caught the quick smile and was struck by how different he looked when he wasn't so serious. Sort of like another law enforcement officer she knew pretty well.

Spencer looked at Hotch for approval and then began to speak. "The FBI has had Declan Gage and his activities on our watch list for years. When he was asked to leave the Bureau, not everyone he worked with at the time believed he deserved what he got for trying to bring in the serial killer Sebastian. His most vocal supporter at the time was Jason Gideon, our former boss and my-my friend. Jason kept in touch with Gage over the years and probably knows more about him than anyone, except your partner."

"I must be dense, I'm still not getting it." She crossed her arms and gave a frustrated sigh.

Hotch sat down on the edge of the table and turned toward Bobby. "Declan is claiming it was Sebastian who killed your brother and Nicole Wallace and now he is dangling the possibility of other victims. He says he was set up."

Bobby physically flinched. If he had been punched squarely in the face, it wouldn't have hurt as much as those words did. _Other victims, dear God, no!_ "Donny?" he chocked out.

"Who's Donny?" asked Hotch. He faintly remembered a Donny being mentioned on the interrogation tape, but there was no reference to him anywhere in the file.

Alex quickly spoke up. "His nephew, Frank's only child. Donny's been missing for almost a year now, he escaped from an upstate prison where he was doing time on trumped up charges. Nicole Wallace alluded to his death in a note sent to Bobby, but no body was ever found. Gage claimed Donny wasn't harmed, but..." As she explained, she had quietly slid her hand over and lightly touched her partner's leg, giving it a small squeeze before she broke contact.

"Is the FBI really buying into this nonsense? Sebastian? Come on. What other rabbit would you expect Declan to pull out of his hat when he is cornered?" Bobby was shaking his head back and forth, his brain swirling with anger. _Declan, you selfish sonofabitch. How many more bites do you need to take out of me?_

"Bobby," Hotch began in an even voice. "Sebastian has never been brought in. You saw the crime scene photos, spoke to the one victim he didn't kill, saw the bodies of at least 3 woman he did murder. He's a violent and dangerous man who does have history with Gage. We have to consider all possibilities."

"Hopefully that includes the **possibility** that this is just another of Dec's games." Bobby tone dropped from angry to almost pleading before he added, "Hotch, he's sick. His symptoms fit Frontal Lobe Dementia, the early stages, but it's getting progressively worse. The signs are all there."

Spenser spoke up. "FLD is a disease found most statistically in men 40 to 65 years of age. Characterized by inappropriate or bizarre social behavior; difficulty recognizing consequences of personal behavior; personality changes involving increasing frustration levels and verbal outbursts usually aimed at care givers; lack of concern over personal appearance..."

When Spencer paused to take a breath, Bobby jumped in with, "Asphasia for common words, decreased ability for abstract thought, loss of impulse control. It's all there."

Alex resisted the urge to roll her eyes. This was worse than listening to Dueling Banjos. She glanced at Agent Hotchner who seemed to be unperturbed by the exchange of facts between the two human computers. _And all this time I thought I was the only one sentenced to a life of fighting crime with Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective. Who knew there were others. _

"Spencer and I reviewed the interrogation tape and read the file. But there's a problem." Hotch hesitated, hating to break this piece of news to his already overburdened friend."

"What?" Bobby's throat felt so tight he was surprised he got that one word out.

"The dementia can't be confirmed. Declan has been tested extensively by three different experts. He was tested originally by the NYPD after his confession, the results were negative. So your DA ordered a second test, this one came back with a potential diagnosis of FLD, but it was marginal at best. When we got involved, I sent one of the FBI's leading experts on Neurological Disorders to Riker's and he found no signs of the disease. Even his EEG's were clear."

"Actually Hotch," Spencer interjected, "The second EEG, the one where the marginal diagnosis of FLD was made, did show minute signs of decreased activity in the frontal lobe of Gage's brain. However, this could be explained by other factors, including the stress of being incarcerated.

"How can that be? He is not a good enough actor to have pulled off all the symptoms I saw. Damn, was I played even more than I thought I was?" Bobby bowed his head and rested it in his large hands, elbows on the table.

Hotch put his hand on Bobby's forearm and left it there until the detective looked up. "That's what we need to find out."

"So what do you need to know from me?"

"Everything," Spencer said. "We need to know everything."

"Is that all?" Alex snorted. "A piece of cake, huh partner?"

Spencer looked over at her and raised his eyebrows before speaking. "It's interesting that you should say that Alex, because **you** are the one who might hold the key to our best evidence so far."

**TBC**

**A/N: Hope I am not making this too convoluted. Next up – Revelations from Alex, Bobby and...Jo Gage! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in any way. Simply borrowing them for my own pleasure.**

**I did not use a beta reader, so all mistakes are my own.**

**Characters' thoughts are in italics**

**Chapter 3 – Confession is good for the soul**

"**I **might be the key?" Alex looked over at Bobby and they shared a long look, before she addressed the two agents. "I have no idea what you could be referring to, but let me make something perfectly clear to both of you. Declan Gage has never been a part of my life, nor will he ever be. My only 'connection' to him is that Bobby and I are partners and I had to witness what that bastard put him through."

"Eames." He said her name gently, but there was a subtle warning in the dulcet tone.

"No!" She turned toward him, oblivious to the agents in the room. "I'm sorry, but that's how I feel. You can't expect me to watch you get the crap kicked out of you time after time and not be angry." She begged him with her eyes to understand what she was trying to say. "Even, maybe especially, if you can't be angry on your own behalf."

He couldn't say a word to reassure her that he did understand and that he appreciated her fierce loyalty to him, because he couldn't trust that he would be able to control his raw emotions. So instead, this time it was his hand that gently touched her leg for a moment.

She got his message loud and clear. She drew a deep, calming breath before facing Spenser. "Sorry about that"

"It's fine, Alex. I work with partners too. I get it."

Hotch spoke up. "We know you have been getting letters from Jo Gage, Alex."

She stiffened and then answered him in a clipped tone. "Letter, singular. Just one."

"Are you sure, because the prison mail system shows 15 were mailed out with your address over the past 18 months."

She narrowed her eyes and fixed the agents with an icy stare. "I got ONE and I burned it, didn't even open it."

"Why?" Spencer asked, in a voice that could be as deceptively quiet as her partner's.

"Why did I get it or why did I burn it?" She was getting really annoyed now. "You've read my file, you know every gory detail of my kidnapping. She paused, waiting for some reaction, but when none was forthcoming she plunged on. "Why did I burn it? There could be nothing in that letter for me. It was one of two things; an apology, which I was wasn't interested in or another chance to mess with my head, which I wasn't going to give her."

"You're positive that you only received one?" Hotch asked her again.

"Am I stuttering Agent Hotchner?" Alex bit out.

There was dead silence in the room until Bobby spoke up. "The D.A. has any letters that were actually mailed, Hotch" He glanced at Alex, then looked away quickly. "Captain Ross can vouch for the chain of evidence."

Alex was visibly startled by his words. "What are you talking about?"

He turned to her. "Eames, I didn't know even one made it to you." He sighed. "You know I visited Jo a couple times since her incarceration."

Alex nodded, mouth tight, eyes still snapping with extreme annoyance. He knew she didn't approve of his relationship with Jo anymore than she did of the one he had with Declan.

"She mentioned she wanted to write to you. I encouraged her to do it."

"Why would you do that, Bobby?"

"Who knows what else Jo might say to implicate herself if the pressure was off. It was early days in your case and I was not willing to risk her getting away with those murders and your abduction."

"But," he added, seeing her anger build, "I wasn't going to take the chance of her getting to you again, not even on paper. I went through the Warden and Captain Ross and had the letters interceded and sent directly to the DA who had them entered as future evidence just in case it was needed."

_Somehow we always end up right here, she thought. You Tarzan, me Jane. Dammit, Bobby. _"What did they say?" Her voice was taut with emotion.

"I have no idea. If I read them I would have felt obligated to tell you about them. I was trying to spare you more pain Alex."

"I am a Major Case Detective and your technical superior, Bobby. I had the right to know."

He nodded. "You were also the victim, going through a very tough time. I was tying to be your friend, not just your partner."

His choice of words were not lost on Alex. _Maybe I need to toss out a few bricks myself, she thought. _She favored him with a small smile and let her anger dissipate somewhat._ "_Alright_. _At least you went through proper channels. I know you were trying to help me."

"As you said yourself, there was nothing in those letters for you. I basically forgot about them. I had no idea that many were sent."

She furrowed her brow in surprise. "You don't forget anything."

"There's been a lot going on lately." He looked down at his hands and she decided to let him off the hook.

She looked at Dr. Reid. "You feel the letters may have something to do with Declan?"

"Statistically it's probable and to quote an old Scottish Proverb, 'Open confession is good for the soul.'"

Alex looked at Bobby, confused.

"What Spencer is trying to say, I think," Bobby interjected, "Is that there is a good chance Declan needed someone to confide in and Jo might have been it.

"But why would she tell ME anything that her father said.? Why would she think I would care?"

Alex watched Bobby's mind grinding away before he answered. "She may have thought **I** would care. Sending letters directly to me would be too obvious and might have alerted Declan. Letters to you could just be interpreted as part of her guilt, a chance to make amends so to speak."

"Right," Spencer confirmed. " Alex would have almost certainly have shared the information contained in those letters with her partner. If the letter's content bears this hypothesis out, it was a smart plan."

Bobby felt a swirl of conflicting emotions as he thought about Jo. Sadness for her wasted talent and intelligence, guilt for not seeing how bad her life was when he was wading right in the middle of it, anger at her for harming someone who was so precious to him, but he wisely said nothing. Alex had enough to deal with without him mentioning anything personal about Jo Gage.

He suddenly had a thought. "Hotch, have any letters been sent to Alex recently?"

"Yes. The last one was mailed two days before..."

"Before Jo bit off her own tongue after a visit from Declan," Bobby finished. He nodded at the agents. "The timing of her suicide attempt, if that's what it was, has always bothered me. I haven't been able to decide if Declan told her something so bad she couldn't bear to have to repeat it or if she was just done talking to him and couldn't find any other way to keep him at bay."

The room was quiet for a minute as the four of them gave Bobby's last statement some thought.

"Alex," Spencer finally said. "We need your permission to read those letters."

**A/N: I took a little dramatic license with the time line of Jo biting her tongue. In my world, it happened after a visit from Declan, not before his scheduled visit with her as it was shown in "Frame".**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in any way. Simply borrowing them for my own pleasure.**

**I did not use a beta reader, so all mistakes are my own.**

**Characters' thoughts are in italics**

**Chapter 4 – In the Mind of a Killer**

"We need your permission to read those letters."

Spencer's words hung in the air as she struggled to control her emotions. For a moment she actually felt sick to her stomach about the thought of reading, hearing or touching anything that was ever in the vicinity of Jo Gage. In the next second however, she realized that she _needed_ to know what they said, but more importantly Bobby needed to know and this whole thing was about him, not her. She had truly meant what she said about being there for him. She could do this. She had to. "Do what you need to do agent, but I can't do this on an empty stomach. Can we get some food first, please?"

"Alex, I..." Bobby began, looking at her with concern. He had kept the letters from her in the first place to spare her any further pain. Now, because of his relationship with Declan, she was being forced to relive that terrible ordeal in front of all of them.

She turned to Bobby and in the sweetest voice he had probably ever heard her use, answered him with, "Yes, did you want to say something?" Her face however, clearly said, and not in a sweet tone, _if you dare try that protection excuse on me again today, I will hurt you._

He sighed and said nothing more.

Uhhh, sure," Spenser said, looking at Hotch for a moment, before continuing with, " Alex, you don't have to be here for the letters you know.

"Yes I do." Her tone invited no further discussion. "What do you want to eat gentlemen? Bobby and I can go pick it up while you handle the DA."

Forty-five minutes later the table was littered with partially empty Chinese take-out cartons, eggrolls, and fortune cookies. Bobby and Spencer were both expertly wielding rice and noodles to their mouths via chopsticks, while Hotch and Alex used plastic forks. The letters laying in the middle of the table in a plastic evidence envelope with the seal still intact. She did her best to ignore it and focus on her moo shoo pork.

* * *

Declan Gage lay on his hard, lumpy mattress and listened to the sounds of hell that echoed around him from all directions. Angry voices, profanity, clanking, screeching, yelling. Despite the actual time of the day or night, it sounded exactly the same, his world was just differently lit. Dark or Light. No in between. No matter. He didn't really care anymore. Everything that meant anything to him was gone. Bobby, Jo, his mind...his freedom. He had spent half of his adult life in prisons, admittedly on the other side of the bars, but he hadn't thought that the switching of sides would be this difficult. He reached under the waistband of his prison issued jump suit and retrieved the letter that he had found under his pillow 3 days ago.

"_You screwed up Declan. You knew the deal. You let your ego get the best of you. Recant now or Bobby will die._"

Declan had believed his personal sacrifice would be enough, that allowing himself to take the blame for the deaths and spending the rest of his days in prison would satisfy the monstrous man behind all of this. He had been wrong. All he could do now was wait. They would come for him soon enough.

* * *

"So, does anyone see anything out of the ordinary," Hotch asked the others after they all had read through each of the fifteen letters.

"They're utterly inane and boring," was Alex's take.

"She's a bad typist," added Spencer.

Bobby rubbed the back of his hand wearily across his eyes before he answered. "Not at first glance. Kind of rambling, but not extremely out of character."

"Does stark raving mad count as 'character' these days, Bobby?" Alex quipped at her partner, before adding, "Why would Jo bother to send me these letters full of drivel. Why would she care if I knew what she ate or read or any of the stupid things she wrote about."

No one seemed to have a good answer to that. There was silence for a moment while they all glanced at the letters again. Finally, a consensus was reached that that letters were a dead end.

"So, where do we go from here?" Bobby asked looking at Hotch.

"The most logical step seems to be to speak with the source. Spencer and I will make arrangements to go see Gage as soon as possible"

Bobby's face took on the stubborn look Alex knew so well. "I'm coming with you."

"Afraid not, detective. You know better than that." Hotch answered him quickly.

"You need me, Aaron."

"Maybe, but I still can't let you come." Hotch laughed a little, trying to diffuse the tension. "Give us some credit. We do this every day. "

"I need to be there." Bobby's voice was quiet, but full of steel.

"Man, you are way too close to this to have any hope of being objective enough to see the big picture." Hotch could see Bobby's face tightening up with anger and frustration.

"Bobby," he began again, his tone softening a bit. "It would be impossible for Spenser and I to have not noticed that you are not exactly the flavor of the month with the NYPD, especially to your Chief. I get that this whole situation wounds you in about a dozen different ways, personally and professionally. How could it not? But that being said, this investigation will be run by the book. It has to, there's too much at stake."

"Who knows that better than me," Bobby answered, sarcasm evident in his words. "But you don't understand how deceptive Declan can be. I know that when it comes to this situation that the BAU is better equipped to handle this investigation, but no one knows him like I do. I have to see how he responds to you, how he answers the questions, how he tries to lead you, like I know he will. You need my input."

Aaron gave Spenser a look and then took a deep breath before answering. "I will agree _only_ to you observing behind a two way mirror. But, and I need you to hear me, if you make your presence known to Gage in any way, its all over. We can't let him think he has got his way, at least not yet. Granting him time with you may be our only bargaining chip until we get more insight."

"You have my word, Hotch. I won't interfere in any way." Relief was clearly written all over the big detective's face.

Hotch nodded grudgingly. He wasn't happy about the concession, but he had expected to have to make it. He did trust Bobby to keep his word, despite what he had recently read from his personnel file. From spending time with the man in this room, he knew that Bobby was still the same hard driven, intelligent, trustworthy man he had always known. Besides, honestly, the more eyes on Gage the better.

Hotch looked at Alex and cocked an eyebrow. "I suppose its a package deal detective?"

"Of course," Alex answered. "It's part of the '2-for-the-price-of-none' special I'm running at the moment,."

Hotch stood and cast another look to Spenser who nodded slightly. "Why don't the two of you go home and get some rest. I'll make the arrangements with the prison and then give you a call with the meeting time later Bobby".

Bobby and Alex got to their feet and Bobby and stood shook hands with both men. He waited patiently for Alex to gather her things before following her out of the room. They stood silently in the elevator as it made its way down to the parking garage.

Alex looked at him carefully before speaking. "You OK Bobby?"

He sighed and started to say he was fine, but changed his mind and for once answered honestly. "I don't know. I guess I'm mostly numb. How 'bout you."

"Tired. Not looking forward to the long drive to Rockaway."

He surprised her by throwing our quickly, "You can have my couch if you want it." He met her eyes briefly before looking down, his vulnerability clearly showing on his face.

She began to protest that she wasn't trying to wrangle an invitation, then changed her mind too. This was more honest emotion than she had seem from him in a long time and she took it as a good sign. "Thanks."

"What are friends for, Eames?" he replied with a relived and gentle smile as they stepped off the elevator and made their way to her car for the short drive to his apartment.

UP NEXT: **The interrogation of Dr. Gage.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in any way. Simply borrowing them for my own pleasure.**

**I did not use a beta reader, so all mistakes are my own.**

**Characters' thoughts are in italics**

**Chapter 5- The Interrogation of Dr. Gage: Two for the price of one.**

Bright and early the next morning the two FBI agents were already seated at the conference table in the interrogation room at Rikers when Declan was led in and then shackled to his chair.

"Gentleman," Declan began in his characteristic chiding manner. "Is this really necessary?" he continued motioning to his restraints. "What physical threat can an old man be to the two of you?"

Hotch fixed Declan with an icy stare. "It's protocol, Mr. Gage"

"It's Dr. Gage, which I know you are aware of. I wrote the guidelines for prisoner interrogation that you were breast fed on Agent Hotchner." Declan turned his watery hazel eyes to the younger man. "Even if you have brought the Boy Wonder here with you, I can assure you that any tricks of manipulation you have up your collective sleeves will be quite useless."

"No problem," Hotch responed. "You were the one who requested this interview. It can be over now if you like," and Hotch rose to go, followed quickly by Spencer.

"Oh, sit down," Declan said. "We have to make sure Bobby gets an eye full now don't we."

"Detective Goren is obviously not here," Hotch said, continuing to give his best imitation of a chiseled stone bust.

"Of course he is. No way would Bobby have allowed you to exclude him, just as no way you would have allowed me to see him until we played this little game." He looked right at the mirror and waved happily. "Hello, my boy... Eames." Her name was said with a lot less enthusiasm. "Of course _she's_ here too. Isn't it my lucky day."

Spencer spoke up for the first time since entering the room. "Dr. Gage, if what you say is true and you know exactly where this interview is headed, then it also stands to reason that you knew it would be the FBI that responded when you recanted and made the corruption charges against the NYPD."

"Oh ho, young man." Declan cackled. "Corruption charges? I did not claim corruption. I claimed coercion and don't try to confuse me. It won't help your cause if I get off track. I'm sick you know."

"Not according to our experts," Spenser countered.

"We both know what your experts conclusions amount to. Nothing. It's a classic case of he said, he said. Dueling opinions." Declan waved a hand languidly in the air. "I am perfectly aware that no consensus was reached." He crossed his arms and looked at the two agents with that smugly superior look on his face Bobby was so familiar with.

"Not exactly true Dr. Gage," Spencer began, again using the older mans title to stroke Declan's ego. "One test did show signs of FLD. The problem is that two did not."

"You know perfectly well D_octor _Reid that organic changes to gray matter do not come and go. You should have sprung for better examiners."

"It's nice to know prison hasn't changed him," Alex murmured from her place next to Bobby in the observation room. He was standing perfectly still, his brow furrowed with concentration. She knew he was cataloging every move, gesture and word Declan made in that big brain of his.

"There was nothing wrong with our examiners. It's just a shame there is no fool-proof test for bullshit. You would have passed that with flying colors." Hotch rose from his seat and moved closer to Declan before addressing him again. "What do you have to say to that? What no witty comeback?"

A shadow passed over Gage's face leaving his features hard and angry. Alex felt Bobby stiffen beside her as he watched the transformation.

"These little games the pair of you thought you were going to play have no effect on me. Maybe they work on the slackers and the weak minded members of society. Seriously, is this the best you two have? This is the mighty BAU? What a waste of taxpayer money." There was hard edge to Gage's voice. Gone was the chiding tone and the exact pronunciation of every syllable.

Spencer nearly started involuntarily when Gage's demeanor changed. He had a brief flashback to a small, hot shack and the feel of a heavy rope wound tightly around his aching wrists. The sound of the lunatic's voice deriding him, and the miserable days spent watching the man flit in and out of different voices and demeanors. A small pit of fear settled in his stomach for an instant, then dissipated as he reminded himself silently that that was ancient history and he was safe now.

Without warning Declan launched himself toward Hotch, screaming obscenities. The shackle around his ankle didn't quite allow him to reach the agent, but that detail didn't seem to faze Declan in the least. The old man continued to lash out, failing his arms, sending his case file scattering across the table like autumn leaves in a stiff fall breeze.

"Guard," Hotch yelled as jumped out of harm's way, followed closely by Spencer. Two officers entered the room and began to subdue Dr. Gage.

The instant the officers placed heir hands on Declan he crumpled into his seat and shook his head lightly, like he was trying to clear it. The guards unshackled him from the chair and began dragging him from the room.

"No! Please! Bobby! I'm counting on you! Think it through. Follow the clues. You are the only hope any of us have. You have to stop him! It's been Sebastian all along! Bobby!" Gage's voice trailed off as he was forcibly lead from the room and through the gate.

Bobby stood motionless staring at the now empty interrogation room. Hotch and Spencer walked into the observation area and looked at the two detectives still standing in front of the mirror.

"So, "Aaron finally said when no response was forthcoming. "What do you make of that?"

When Bobby failed to respond or even move, Alex turned toward the agents and said in her snarkiest tone, "That's our Declan – Mister One Trick Pony himself. He never fails to entertain." While she spoke she laid her hand gently on Bobby's shoulder and felt him trembling. She glanced at Spencer and by the look on his face could tell he too knew Bobby was struggling.

"Why don't we meet you two back at the SUV. I would like to take another run at him after they get him back to his cell. Ok Hotch?" Spencer looked at Hotch and then at Bobby and back to his boss.

Hotch caught his meaning, nodded and said, "Good idea. We shouldn't be too long. He might not be in any shape for more questions."

Without moving an inch Bobby mumbled, "ok," and then "thanks."

Alex flashed them both a grateful look then went back to stand beside Bobby. She turned her back to the mirror and leaned on the frame, silently, trying to give him some time to pull himself together. As far she she knew (and sincerely hoped) this was the first time he had seen his old mentor since the trial.

Five or ten minutes went by in complete silence before Bobby blew out a sigh and turned away from the mirror himself.

"Are you ok?" she asked.

"No. Sometimes I'm not sure I will ever be okay again."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

He turned again, this time to face her and looked at her quietly with his sad, troubled eyes. "There's nothing to say, Eames."

_Eames, not Alex._ She thought. It had been too go to last. His statement was a cop-out if she had ever heard one, but decided to let it go, for now. "Then let's head for the vehicle. I hate this place."

* * *

About an hour later Spencer and Hotch joined Alex and Bobby in the black Explorer. The time had done them both good, Bobby had pulled himself together and had spent the time scribbling copious notes in his notebook. Alex had settled back in the seat and closed her eyes, trying to rid herself of the chilling flashbacks that overtook her every time she heard the sound of metal sliding on metal – like the sound of a cell door sliding open or closed.

"Well," Spenser began. "Talking to Gage in his cell was a no go. By the time we got there the infirmary nurse had sedated him. He just kept mumbling about Sebastian and well, you, Bobby."

Bobby glanced at Spencer, who was turned halfway in his front seat. "Do you think it was an act?"

"Which part?"

"All of it."

Spencer glanced at Hotch, who then addressed Bobby. "What do you think?"

"I asked first Aaron." There was no challenge in his voice. "I need to know what fresh eyes think."

Aaron nodded and began to speak. "Declan Gage is a highly intelligent, highly manipulative narcissist.

He believes himself to be above everyone around him. He believes that what ever he wants, what ever he cares about, what ever he directs his passion towards is all that exists in the world. He puts his needs above all others. He enjoys making others feel small and he likes to hear himself talk. He spent years working on one case, which in a person without his pathologies would show determination, but which in someone like Gage just emphasizes his need to be right, his obsession with being right. He is unable to form lasting attachments, unless they benefit him. People with his pathology have an uncanny ability to sense the weakness in others and exploit it for their own agendas. They are usually good actors and use their ability to prevaricate to fool others into joining them in their causes. They can be charming but can turn that charm on and off like a tap."

Alex watched her partner carefully as Hotch laid out his findings. Some of it was not flattering to Bobby and his long term relationship with Gage. His face was static, no emotion showed, but she could feel his deep dismay and embarrassment. _How much more can he take _she wondered silently.

Bobby looked over at Spenser. "Do you agree with Aaron's profile?"

"I do Bobby," Spenser answered. "But, to answer your first question, I don't believe the whole thing was an act. The end part seemed real, even if the outburst was out of character for a man with his issues."

He turned to his diminutive partner. He had felt her eyes on him the whole time and knew she saw straight through his brave front. "What do you think Alex?"

"What I have always thought. Gage is loony, certifiable even and exactly where he needs to be. Nothing I witnessed today changed that assessment."

"I agree. With all of it." He looked carefully at each of them. Some of that scene was classic Declan, but some of it...I'm just not sure."

UP NEXT: **Revelations**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in any way. Simply borrowing them for my own pleasure.**

**I did not use a beta reader, so all mistakes are my own.**

**Characters' thoughts are in italics**

**Chapter 6 - Alters and Hosts**

The four of them had driven back to 1 PP. The rest of the day was spent going over their individual notes, typing up reports and laying out plans for the continued investigation.

Hotch and Alex had finally given up around 10 pm and gone off, separately, to get some sleep.

Bobby and Spenser, who found they were kindred spirits in the world of insomnia, were sitting in front of two large evidence boards, staring at 8 of the letters Jo had sent Alex. They spanned a 9 month time frame, with the last being sent 2 days before she bite off most of her tongue. Both felt there had to be something in them, but what?

As he stared at the letters, his mind drifted to Declan. Bobby had seen something in Declan's face during the interview at Riker's that morning that he had never seen before, not even on the day of his confession. Dec had seemed insane that day, but the person he saw in the prison had a core of steel that he had never imagined Dec possessed. Almost like seeing someone else. "Like he was someone else," Bobby said out loud, almost too low for Spencer to hear it, but not quite.

"You saw that too?" Spencer asked.

Bobby nodded. "It was his face. It's like a shadow passed over it."

"I don't know him like you do," Spencer said, "but I felt like I was talking to two people. I..." he paused.

Bobby looked over at the young man and saw the pain on his face. "What is it, Spencer?"

"I've experienced this before." Spencer took a deep breath and looked away before he continued. "I, umm, was held captive...for several days...by a serial killer named Tobias Hankel, who had Dissociative Identity Disorder. He floated in and out of himself and his 2 'alters'. I would almost swear that was what Gage was doing, though not as cleanly."

Bobby stifled the urge to tousle the younger man's hair, like he was prone to do when dealing with a "lost" young man. He knew Spencer was not one of this lost boys, he was an expectationally bright FBI agent, who just happened to look like a teenager. Instead he put a large hand on Spencer's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I'm sorry you had to go through that."

Spencer looked up at him for a moment and felt that he had been right to trust Bobby with this painful and personal revelation. He nodded his thanks at Bobby's gesture.

"Multiple personalities, rare, controversial among the psychiatric community," Bobby mused out loud as he continued to stare at the letters and started wondering again about the mistakes he saw. "Do you remember what you said about Jo being a bad typist?"

"Yeah. She skipped spaces where she shouldn't have. Sometimes left off the last letter from some of the words."

"Does it bother you that the errors occur only occasionally, no more than 3 or 4 times per letter? If she was really a bad typist shouldn't the mistakes be more wide spread?"

"It does seem less than random, Bobby. The mistakes also don't appear in the first 7 letters, only the last 8."

"Yeah, and by the dates of the letters that was when Dec visited her the most, according to the visitor's log at Bedford Hills. He told me he had been writing a book about women serial killers. It was published right along that time so he would have needed something else to occupy his time. Maybe Jo was the occupation." He slid off the table and looked at the letters again intently. He pulled them off the board and fanned them across the table, arranging them chronologically by the date written. Suddenly he grabbed a highlighter and began marking the sentences in the letters that had the skipped spaces. Then he went back and underlined the skipped letters themselves.

_I miss eating corn on the c ob. _

_Has the weather turned c ool outside?_

_Watched that big basketball player, Sha q, on TV yesterday._

_Can you settle a bet, are all ca rp goldfish?_

_They brought a li v bird show here. _

_I been reading a lot ofbooks by James Patterson lately._

_They finally turned the heat of __f__ here__. _

_Did your mother wear an ap __ron__? _

_At services today they talked about the rod and the staf f. _

_Do you think Prince Charles will ever be kin g. _

_I ha v lot of free time, but too much time for thinking. _

_We actually got a bana na today, but I hate them._

_Let me tel l you about my favorite new book. _

_Dad spent too much time in his la b. _

_Not sure which h one to start with. _

_Now I wish I was a better gard ner**, **might be able to see the sun more._

_I miss hearing dogs b ark._

_Funny thin g to say I guess._

_Lots o __f__ new staff here now._

_So many people beggin __g__ for cigarettes everyday._

_Can you_ _imagine using a ca __b__ to visit a prison? _

_De __c__ is coming for a visit soon._

_Yo u are a good person Alex._

_I ha v made a new friend._

_We saw the Wizard of O z at movie night._

As soon as Spenser realized what Bobby was doing, he began writing down the underlined letters, exactly in the order they appeared in Jo's letters.

ob ool q rp v f f ron f g v na l b h ark g f g b c u v z

"Some of the letters are grouped together after the extra space. Some of the words had dropped endings, maybe because she couldn't find words that ended in those consonants?" Spencer spoke out loud as his brain ran the letters through its own code recognition software. "Bobby, how intelligent is Jo?"

"Very. But if I know Jo she would make it something I would be able to figure out. She knows me pretty well."

Did you two ever use a code for anything?

No. It was Declan I spent the most time time with. Jo was always there, but...

Spencer began to smile. He had it. "Were you a Boy Scout, Bobby?"

"Actually, I was, for a while." He looked at Spenser quizzically, before turning his attention to the letters Spencer had written. "It got me out of the house. Why do you wanna..," then suddenly he saw it too. He smiled back at Spencer, grabbed his cell and pressed a button. "You call yours, I'll call mine."

* * *

Less than an hour later all the four of them were looking at the message Jo had woven into her last eight letters.

Spencer pointed to the line of letters he had transferred to the large white wipe off board and began to explain. "Jo used a code commonly taught to Boy Scouts. Its called the Half-Reversed Alphabet code. It's basic, but not immediately apparent when used the way she did, which was to weave the coded letters into ordinary words with the coded letters separated by a space which at first glance just looked like bad typing skills." The young man's voice was so enthusiastic, that Alex found herself smiling slightly and thinking about how her partner used to look like that when he had a solution by its tail. "You write out the alphabet A to M and then under that write out N to Z, like this" He wrote it out for them on the white board:

**a b c d e f g h i j k l m**

**n o p q r s t u v w x y z**

"You use the same alphabet for coding and decoding. A stands for N and N stands for A. B stands for O and O stands for B and so on. If we apply that cipher, here is what we get - "

**ob ool q rp v f f ron f g v na l b h ark g f g b c u v z =**

**bo bby d ec i s s eba s t i an y o u nex t s t o p h i m**

If we then group the letters into logical word patterns, you end up with this:

**Bobby Dec Is Sebastian You Next Stop Him.**

Alex spoke up. "Spencer, are you sure about your code?."

"I saw it too, Alex. Maybe not as fast," Bobby answered, shooting a quick grin at the young genius, "but I agree with his conclusion." He was actually thrilled to be sharing the discovery with someone who understood what it was like to make the intellectual leap, though admittedly Spencer was faster.

"What do you two think she means by 'Dec is Sebastian'?" Hotch asked.

"It's Tobias all over again, Aaron."

"Reid, DID is rare. Even with the kinds of cases we work." Hotch was looking at Spencer carefully. The Tobias case had nearly destroyed the young man. That he would willingly discuss it, even this little bit, either meant Spenser was sure he was right or he was more messed up about it then Hotch thought he was.

Bobby turned to Alex. "DID, Dissociative Identity Disorder also still sometimes known as Multiple Personality Disorder."

"What are you saying? Gage has multiple personalities. Like Sybil? Please. You two need a nap." She gestured at her partner and the younger agent. "This is what happens Hotch, when playtime for the kiddies is not well monitored. I can't believe they interrupted my beauty sleep for this." She started to get out of her chair.

"Eames, I saw it. It was right there on his face, in his demeanor." He didn't turn to her, didn't even try to make eye contact, but she heard it in his voice as clear as if he said the words out loud – Trust Me.

She sat back down, the look on her face softening. "I know you want an explanation for this that somehow makes your faith in your mentor well founded. I get that. If Gage..." she was going to say 'was sick' but that went without saying. Multiple personalities or not, Gage would always be sick in her book. "Jo is probably just trying to screw with me, and you. She had a lot of times on her hands, you know."

Bobby looked at her for a moment before speaking. "She could have 'messed' with us in far more straight forward ways. Alex, a diagnosis of DID would explain the differing results on his three EEG's."

"I read that research," Spencer confirmed. "If the Alter is the one being tested and that personality is strong enough, even the brain waves of the Host could be altered, depending on which one was in control."

Alex started repeatedly tapping her index and middle fingers in a two tap pattern, against the left side of her shirt, right below her collarbone.

"Uh, Alex. What are you doing?' Spencer queried.

"I'm trying to activate my Communicator Pin. We **are** on the Starship Enterprise right, Data? I need to beam out of here." She snorted. "Alter and Host. Could you please speak English for those of us who have a life and don't live in a medical journal."

"I didn't know you liked Star Trek, Eames." Bobby added, amusement written all over his face.

She ignored him.

"Alter refers to...Dr. Reid began.

"Spencer," Alex said. "I get it. Just making a point is all. Gentleman, I am usually willing to go along with any ride, as my partner will tell you, but this one may be too strange, even for me."


End file.
